Customs Seizes 34,470 Liters of Smuggled Fuel at Taraba-Cameroon Border
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has intercepted 1,149 jerrycans of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) smuggled through the Dorofi and Kan Iyaka axis along the Gembu-Cameroon border in Taraba State.
Speaking in Jalingo on Friday, the Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, revealed that the operation, codenamed “Operation Whirl Wind”, was executed between March 8 and 9, 2025, based on intelligence from security agencies.
Adeniyi emphasized the NCS’s commitment to preventing Nigeria’s subsidized fuel from being diverted to neighboring countries, ensuring economic stability.
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He stated that their intelligence-led operations had successfully disrupted an emerging smuggling corridor and reaffirmed their determination to protect Nigeria’s resources.
The seized fuel totaled 34,470 liters, contained in 1,149 jerrycans, each with a 30-liter capacity. Customs also impounded a special-purpose smuggling vehicle valued at N4 million, bringing the total duty-paid value of the seizure to N37.78 million.
Adeniyi acknowledged the challenging terrain of the border area, which facilitates smuggling, but assured that Customs would deploy technology for real-time intelligence gathering and surveillance.
He also urged Nigerians to support the fight against smuggling by providing credible intelligence to security agencies. He emphasized that smuggling is an economic crime that hurts national development, and with public collaboration and inter-agency efforts, authorities will clamp down on these illegal activities.
Controller Garba Bature of the Adamawa/Taraba Command reiterated the agency’s commitment to eliminating smuggling and called on border communities to work with security agencies in intelligence gathering.
With this latest crackdown, the Nigeria Customs Service is sending a strong message that fuel smuggling will not be tolerated, and violators will face the full weight of the law.
